American passengers hit with threat of Aer Lingus strike this summer

Passenger from New York says her priceless engagement ring and invaluable family photographs were taken from carry on bag.Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland

Transatlantic passengers will be in the firing line if a planned strike by cabin crew at Irish national carrier Aer Lingus goes ahead this summer.

The Impact trade union is to strike over the busy summer period after 97 per cent of its members voted in favour of industrial action.

The vote was taken after management and unions failed to reach agreement on a new deal for crew rosters.

The latest industrial dispute to hit the state airline involves staff demands on rosters for short-haul services and time-off arrangements after long-haul flights.

Angry cabin crew members want their roster to mirror those for pilots at the airline, with five days on and three days off.

Trade union official Michael Landers told the paper that the result of the ballot, for industrial action up to and including strike action, indicated the depth of feeling about the issues contained in the ballot.

Landers said: “The current roster patterns are best described as erratic. We have sought consultation with management on the implementation of a more sustainable and predictable roster which is already in place for pilots and which many other airlines also have in place for cabin crew.

“But management simply haven’t engaged with us, and today’s result demonstrates the frustration of cabin crew as a result.”

A spokesman for Aer Lingus told the Irish Independent that the airline is aware of the result but remains in talks with union leaders.

The spokesman said: “We have not been notified of any planned industrial action, and continue to engage with the Impact cabin crew representatives to address their concerns.”

Cabin crew can work up to 60 hours in a seven-day period according to the union which says the rota system results in shift patterns of six working days and one rest day, followed by six more working days.

Transatlantic passengers will be in the firing line if a planned strike by cabin crew at Irish national carrier Aer Lingus goes ahead this summer.

The Impact trade union is to strike over the busy summer period after 97 per cent of its members voted in favour of industrial action.

The vote was taken after management and unions failed to reach agreement on a new deal for crew rosters.

The latest industrial dispute to hit the state airline involves staff demands on rosters for short-haul services and time-off arrangements after long-haul flights.

Angry cabin crew members want their roster to mirror those for pilots at the airline, with five days on and three days off.

Trade union official Michael Landers told the paper that the result of the ballot, for industrial action up to and including strike action, indicated the depth of feeling about the issues contained in the ballot.

Landers said: “The current roster patterns are best described as erratic. We have sought consultation with management on the implementation of a more sustainable and predictable roster which is already in place for pilots and which many other airlines also have in place for cabin crew.

“But management simply haven’t engaged with us, and today’s result demonstrates the frustration of cabin crew as a result.”

A spokesman for Aer Lingus told the Irish Independent that the airline is aware of the result but remains in talks with union leaders.

The spokesman said: “We have not been notified of any planned industrial action, and continue to engage with the Impact cabin crew representatives to address their concerns.”

Cabin crew can work up to 60 hours in a seven-day period according to the union which says the rota system results in shift patterns of six working days and one rest day, followed by six more working days.

Passenger from New York says her priceless engagement ring and invaluable family photographs were taken from carry on bag.Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland